The countdown is on. Nothing but finalizing a research paper, an appellate brief, a memo re-write, an oral argument, a trusts and estates exam and tying up some loose ends on a project standing between me and J.D. Just a few things, ha, but only a few weeks to do them. They will get done.

Speaking of that, I should be working. But I stopped writing early to spend a few quiet minutes sitting in my apartment, writing a blog entry that next to no one will read, before I go get G from the babysitter. Silly or smart? I do not know.

I have tried not to get too stressed during law school. The pressure and the panic usually does not help anyone anyway, but it is there. Hanging in the library, weighing on the job seekers, hiding behind the student loan balances. I swear it is all about discipline. I am arguably a better student now, with a small child and unquestionably less free time, than I was two years ago, when I really had nothing to do but school. I wish I had dedicated myself to school with the hours I had back then. Why wasn’t I in the library at 10:00 pm spring of my 1L year, learning administrative and constitutional law? Today I am forced to make the most of my hours. It’s not 100 percent. I don’t believe in that either. Everyone needs a break. But sleep, activity, friends and dedication, that’s what you need to get through law school in tact.

Time to enjoy the mini-man for a few hours before it’s back to the books this evening.

We have had a long stretch of frigid hell since the start of the semester. No days above freezing for weeks. I’ve been wearing tights (thanks Mom!) under my jeans for extra warmth, walking to school cursing my birth in this godforsaken state, wanting desperately to win a free trip to Mexico, or Kentucky, or anywhere warm (even 50 degrees!), stat! Icy sidewalks, slippery one-mile walks to and from school, frozen faces, staticky hair from wearing hats — ahh Midwestern winter on campus.

I only opine about it with some fondness right now because today is sunny and melty. Walking home just now, a runner passed me with a short-sleeve shirt on and no hat. I saw another wearing shorts, a long-sleeve t-shirt and no winter gear. This is what happens to people in the north! This is why we scoff, along with our new President, at schools closing for half an inch of snow or a little ice. This is because today, when weather.com tells me it’s 38 degrees, but feels like 30, is a heat wave!

Getting the grade I expected (not great) on my “Senior Partner Meeting” which is considered an oral presentation and maybe 10% of my overall grade for Civil Procedure

Winter is here. It’s cold walking a mile to and from school every day. Luckily I’m from this part of the world, so I’m “used” to it.

Leaving my Crim book at my house in hometown last weekend leading to….

… being serially unprepared for Crim class all week

I’m really sad about my memo. I don’t think it was brimming with awesomeness or anything, but the comments from my legal writing teacher on the draft were just short of glowing. My professor graded them however, and he didn’t love it. I didn’t do poorly, but I was expecting an A/A-, and that’s not what I got. I’m not sure what to do about this. Everyone has different preferences on what is good writing, organization, etc. I guess considering that, it just doesn’t seem right to have one lawyer/instructor comment and evaluate the drafts and another do the final grades. (Sigh).

Better parts:

Mock trial went awesome – this really reflects on my teammates, who are quite an impressive group of future lawyers.

Post-mock trial going out like a 1L for perhaps the third time this semester. I can’t handle the binge drinking like the average 22-year-old anymore, but Thursday night we had tons of fun.

Feeling like I’m so incredibly lucky to have such great section-mates. We aren’t even annoyed with each other yet. I don’t even think it’s going to happen!

Creating an official exam-study playlist for myself. It’s full of wonderful tunes I hope will prevent discouragement and general stress-induced 1L mania in the next four weeks.

I thought I would post, but I have a problem. That chocolate raspberry torte up there is starting to grate on me. I like to change things up once in a while – you know – change the scenery so I don’t get bored.

However, I don’t have any good photos that I can use here. So… if anyone has a digital image of a torte (or a tort – oh! that might be even more fun!) please leave a comment and I’ll email you so that you can in turn e-mail me the image. Of course, by offering me your tort(e) image, you must agree to the terms and conditions of it being at the top of my blog for a few months.

Okay, I know most of you probably have waaaay better things to do in November than dig through your photos for pictures of dessert or freak accidents, so I won’t be offended if no one helps me.

The days are brisk. The leaves are faded and falling fast. I got my winter coat out this weekend. There are rumors of flurries. Snow that is.

If I watched any regular television these days I suppose I would have already starting seeing marketing for the holiday season. Thank god I hardly watch any television though, because I hate Christmas advertising before December; maybe I hate it completely.

I’m nearing page 500 in some of my law school books. People are outlining and reviewing and starting to talk about finals. My civil procedure brief, which takes the place of a final, will be assigned soon. The reading seems manageable now. I’m definitely over that hump. It sure helps when you don’t have to look up what summary judgment or certiorari mean.

The weeks fly by. Get up early Monday to drive from hometown to college town to my part-time job. Finish work, go to class, make dinner, study, sleep. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Oh look, it’s Friday already! Go to one class (maybe) and get back to hometown. Hang out with F. Study in places without any law students. Sleep in. Cook something warm and delicious. Watch Desperate Housewives as some sort of weekend-end treat.

Overall, things are going well. The two or so weeks that felt like hell are over. I got a very positive review of my first memo draft, which made me extremely proud. Honestly I felt nervous about it. I thought it was good, but who really knows? Legal writing is its own baby. But I dare say I am okay at it, with the potential for excellence. I feel thankful every day for writing skills. It is absolutely an advantage in law school.

There’s a lot of work ahead, but I can’t help thinking how amazing it is to finish class and have six days until my first exam. Six whole days! And an entire two free days between the subsequent exams. Compared to my memory of undergrad exams, it seems like plenty of time to refresh the mind of the semester’s learning. I wouldn’t say that I’m retaining everything the first time I read it or anything, but I do think I’m absorbing a lot of info. I’m starting to come across concepts in contracts that relate to something I learned previously in torts or civil procedure.

I can only hope the seemingly never-ending, frozen winter ahead will go fly as fast as the past few months have.